Super Nations

A potential superpower is a state that is speculated to be, or to be in the process of becoming, a superpower at some point in the21st century. Presently, it is widely considered that only the United States currently fulfills the criteria to be considered asuperpower.[3][4] States most commonly mentioned as being potential superpowers are Brazil,[5][6][7] China,[8] the European Union,[9] India and Russia,[10][11] based on a variety of factors.

However, the record of such predictions has not been perfect. For example, in the 1980s, many political and economic analysts predicted that Japan would eventually accede to superpower status, due to its large population, huge gross domestic productand high economic growth at that time.[12][13]

The Federative Republic of Brazil is considered by a number of analysts and academics a potential superpower of the 21st Century.[5][6][7]

In a lecture entitled Brazil as an Emerging World Power,[14] presented at the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies, Leslie Elliot Armijo has said that "Brazil will soon rise as Latin America’s first superpower". Armijo states that "Brazil keeps solidifying itself as leader of its region by launching a series of integration projects", adding also that "as an international actor, Brazil has also taken a larger share of world politics by incrementing its already strong presence in economic initiatives, such as theInternational Finance Facility and the G20", asserting that "Brazil’s rising...